some happy things

pizzaaaaaargh | hands up if pizza is your favourite food? *shoots both hands up!* so how excited do you think i was to have had the chance to have my favourite naughty food, two days in a row? oh, only very! on tuesday the work crew and i headed over to pizza express to celebrate the return of the rusticella to the autumn menu (and enjoy 30% off, thank you very much!), before heading out the next night with leanne and milly to check out pizza buzz in the city. more on that to come, but needless to say, two pies in two days makes going to the gym so much worth it..

office birthday | before i left the office on friday, a small crown gathered around my desk to wish me a happy office birthday - this included cake. and not just any cake, a cheesecake. and not any old cheesecake, a white chocolate and raspberry cheesecake, born from the hands of mike the bearded baker, and delivered directly to my desk. work birthdays don't come much better than that, right?

city of culture | on thursday i jumped on a train and headed to kingston-upon-hull for a few days of cultural immersion. more on that tomorrow, but needless to say, i had an amazing time.

fashion mash up | the greatest book arrived in the week for me, just in time for my birthday: fashion mash up. illustrated by daisy de villeneuve and released in collaboration with the v&a, this book is a wonderful concoction of paper doll outfits, gold foil stickers, and an explosion of fashion pieces from throughout the last century. it features fun quotes from the likes of oscar wilde and vivienne westwood, interesting fashion facts from across the eras, and pages upon pages of beautifully hand-drawn outfits and accessories from a line of incredible designers. it's fascinating! (and available to buy soon!)

birthday brunch | on saturday i headed out for brunch at the made bar and kitchen inside the roundhouse in camden, for charlie's birthday. it was supposed to be bottomless brunch (meaning two hours to consume as much food and drink as humanly possible), and yet despite me arriving ten minutes late, still no drinks had been been ordered. that was the first sign of trouble. at the half an hour mark, we had to ask for our first drinks. the restaurant was busy, but we had booked weeeeks in advance, which is supposed to help in situations like this. it didn't. we then had to ask to order our food. and more drinks. and more food. the staff were rude and inattentive, and - shock horror - they ran out of prosecco within our first hour. blasphemy for a bottomless brunch, and needless to say, we were pissed. pissed off not pissed drunk, because we weren't. eventually, after a few minor complaints to the manager, the vodka started to flow heavily. sadly, it didn't make up for the shocking start to the meal. (it's a good thing my pals are worth hanging out with for two hours, because the brunch was not.)

birthday drinks | thankfully, my next set of plans made up for the previous lack of booze. lou, carmen and i headed out to our old local drinking hole to check out its newest face lift. we used to go to gem bar in soho at leeeeast twice a week when we worked together all those many moons ago, so when i heard that they were having a revamp, i couldn't wait to see what it would look like. and boooy oh boy, what a change a coat of paint can make! plus: with new, incredibly attentive (and fully-clothed) staff, a quirky cocktail menu, and finger-food list to make you drool, it has everything it needs to entice a new generation of alcoholics through it's central london doors. thankfully, they still have an amazing happy hour too. i can't recommend you check it out more. go go go!

i heart sundays | is there anything better than a lay in, breakfast and coffee in bed, then a lunch date with your mum at your local? nopppppppe. she popped around to pick up a winter coat i'd borrowed for her for iceland, and we went for a wander in the glorious autumn sun while we could. we're off to iceland today, and it's going to be collllllld. although, it looks to be sunny while we're there, so...

holiday planning | we've planned a bunch of trips while we're there. everyone suggested driving, but after driving around ireland recently, and missing out on a lot of the countryside, i didn't want to do that again. so we've got a trip to the golden circle and blue lagoon booked in for tomorrow, and then northern lights tour for wednesday. i'm not confident that we will see any, as it's probably a bit early in the season for them, but i'll just be excited to finally get to reyjavik after wanting to go for so long. i think my first memories of iceland is the mighty ducks films ("greenland is very icy, but iceland is very nice!", and the obsession has grown ever since. except for the fact that it's a volcanic country, which terrifies me no end. but, what a way to spend a birthday, eh!